The last thing you want to have to deal with when traveling with kids is a child who can’t get a good rest and sleep. You know that’s what causes tantrums that are beyond annoying. The next thing you know, your fellow passengers are complaining, you’re suffering from a terrible migraine, or worse, your driving is utterly disturbed. If that isn’t enough reason to choose only the best travel pillow for kids then we’re not sure how else we could convince you so.
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We’ll help you save yourself from the trouble and otherwise avoidable mishaps. We found 7 of the best travel pillows for kids that hit the mark when it comes to your child’s ultimate safety and comfort. Also, our 7 top picks make it through even the toughest travel budgets. Plus, each one keeps your load light and convenient enough to be taken anywhere in the world. So, go ahead and read!
Best Travel Pillow for Kids for 2023 Review: Key Features, Pros, and Cons
When you’re shopping for travel pillows, you’ll be surprised that the prices range anywhere from dollar store levels to breathtaking high. After you’ve taken an honest to goodness examination, you won’t even find glaring advantages. As a matter of fact, the difference could be there or not at all.
The sheer volume of choices will leave you far from being enlightened about what you really need to pack for your kid. The more you look, the more you’re bound to get confused. Until your patience runs out and you end up settling for an item that hardly meets your expectations or the promised value that you’ve paid for.
So here we chose just 7 of the best products out there. We’re sure that there’s at least one that suits every child’s needs and every parent’s meticulous inspection. The table below summarizes how each one differs across key product features you should be looking for when you’re shopping for the best travel pillow for kids.
| Image | Brand | Dimensions | Weight | Colors | Material | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BEST OVERALL   | Dot&Dot | 13.7 x 8.54 x 4.45 in. | 1 lb. | Black, Blue, Light Grey, Dark Grey | Memory Foam with cotton cover | Check price |
PREMIUM PICK   | BCOZZY | 0.39 x 8.27 x 9.45 in. | 0.26 lbs. | Blue, Pink, Dark Grey, Neon Green, Aqua Blue, Light Purple, Violet, Pineapple Prints | Suede cotton | Check price |
BEST VALUE   | INFANZIA | 5 x 5 x 2 in. | 0.57 Ibs | Blue, Grey, Red, Little Devil Print | Cotton | Check price |
  | NIDO NEST | 10.5 x 10.5 x 3 in. | 0.26 lbs. | Bumblebee, Frog, Ladybug, Pig | Polyester & Polyester Blend | Check price |
  | Cloudz | 12 x 13 x 4 in. | 0.2 lbs. | Unicorn, Airplane, Black & White Print, Blue Print, Flamingo, Pink Print, Purple Print, Black, Blue, Grey, Bright Green, Bright Pink, Bright Purple, Bright Blue | Polyurethane | Check price |
  | COOLBEBE | 9.8 x 9.6 x 4 in. | 0.7 lbs. | Monkey, Red (Ladybug Print) | Cotton Pique Fabric | Check price |
  | TALLGO | 8.31 x 7.24 x 6.3 in. | 0.77 lbs. | Black, Pink, Grey, Dark Blue | Memory Foam | Check price |
1. Dot&Dot Twist Travel Pillow with Memory Foam
- Made with memory foam
- Cotton exterior material
- Twistable, customizable shape
- Firm and flexible joints
- Comes with a 30-day moneyback guarantee
This travel pillow is for your child alright. But, it suits you too. How good can that be? It’s possible! With its flexible joints, we’re free to twist and shape this pillow to support our child’s head while seated in his stroller.
When he’s not using it, we’d use it for lower back support. Gets the job done, stays light, and can easily be shaped to fit our carry-on. It’s one-of-a-kind. There’s no other travel pillow on this list quite like it.
2. BCOZZY Kids Travel Pillow with Chin Support
- Chin support
- Flat back
- Ultra-lightweight
This pillow works for your child’s car seat or for the plane seat. We’ve tried out each of their medium-sized and small-sized variations. We found that the chin support is better suited for smaller children. We’ve tried the medium-sized one on ourselves but found the chin support could hardly keep our head in position. Understandably, our heads weigh much more. The medium-sized is built specifically for children 8 to 12 years old.
3. INFANZIA Travel Pillow for Kids
- Ergonomic neck, head, and upper back support
- Adjustable snap button
- Elastic foam material
- Honeycomb-like cotton material
We have to note that this is the most ergonomic choice out of all the choices in this best travel pillow for kids list. It’s perfect for long drives. We could tell our little one gets much-needed, undisturbed rest in the backseat with this one.
However, it isn’t exactly the first choice we’d pick when we’re jet-setting. It’s relatively lighter than most pillows you’ll find but it hardly fits inside our carry-on or diaper bag.
4. NIDO NEST Travelfriendz Kids Travel Pillow – 2 in 1 Pillow and a Toy
- Foam with microbeads filler
- Polyester, Polyester blend outer covering
- 4 fun animal prints to choose from
- Machine washable
- Snap button
Our little one is happiest when we’re tagging these pillows along. You can see why. He got the Bumblebee one. The inevitable truth you’re going to have to deal with when it comes to neck pillows is that most smaller kids will simply not agree to have anything tight around their necks. Since this pillow doubles as a toy, it could be the most genius pillow to pick out for your picky little rascal.
5. Clouds Micro beaded Travel Pillow – Easy to Keep Clean
- Polyurethane external material
- Polystyrene beads filling
- Snap button
We bought the Unicorn Print as a gift for my 5-year old niece. Take a guess what happened next? She loved it! Other than the Unicorn print, this travel pillow is also made of material that doesn’t soil easily. That’s why her mom loved it so much herself.
6. COOLBEBE Animal Travel Pillow for Kids – Easy to Clean
- Flexi snap button
- Ergonomically shaped for head and neck support
- Recommended for 1 to 12 years old
- Lifetime product support
One of the most enjoyable and comfortable travel pillow, our son practically volunteers to carry this monkey on his neck even when walking! This is the neck pillow we bring everywhere — on the plane or on the road.
7. TALLGO Memory Foam Travel Pillow – Durable
- Includes 1 pillow slip, 1 pillow core, and 1 pillow storage bag
- Front adjustable buckle and strap
- Memory Foam
- Removable/zip outer material
- Foldable for packing
Definitely one for your tweens and teens, TALLGO Memory Foam is designed for long-distance travel. Of course, parents like you will benefit from the comfort it brings too. The design is just as apt for bigger kids. As a bonus, the sturdy but flexi memory foam can be bent without worrying about causing lasting damage to the pillow.
Travel Pillow for Kids: Buying Guide
Do you really need a buying guide to pick out the best travel pillow to tag along on your next plane ride or road trip? We know, right?
We used to have the same thoughts until we’ve tried at least 10 kinds of pillows for different trips we’ve had over the past 5 years. Half of those continue to be serviceable — with the help of dry cleaning, of course! The other half proved to be a total waste of money! Two of those ripped off before our plane even touched down our final destinations.
So, here’s what we learned: you need to take some time to study your options. Besides, not getting the right one for travel will definitely cost you so much more since you’ll end up having to spend on another one in a foreign country! Just think about the convenience and peace of mind that you can get just because you got that pillow that puts your kid at ease and fast asleep.
Ergonomics
Here, you have to go back to the underlying reasons why you’re shopping for a pillow for your child in the first place. You’re not just buying one without a purpose.
The main reasons again are comfort and safety. If your choice of travel pillows does not meet comfort then it’s not ergonomic. Your child’s pillow should keep him or her in the proper posture that avoids spine, neck, or head injuries as a result of staying put in one position over a prolonged period of time.
In which case, your pillow should be able to meet key safety concerns for a child during travel. Look for ergonomics and make sure that the pillow is made accordingly for your mode of travel and it should also be safe.
Weight
We can’t stress further why it’s so important to travel light. When you’re traveling with children, however, it can easily feel like you’re carrying a piece of your home with you. Thanks to all those “just in case” items in your bag built for every possible scenario you’ve imagined happening on the road with you or any member of your family.
Finally deciding on what goes into your luggage and carry-on can be a tough decision. So, when it comes to your kid’s travel pillow, stay practical. You don’t have to bring a heavy, contoured option like the Infanzia Travel Pillow if your mode of travel and duration of travel both permit something much simpler and lighter.
Keep in mind that the more convenient it is for you and for your little one, the smoother your getaway would be. If you can keep things light on your shoulders, you’ll both be less cranky throughout your trip.
Size
Once again, the key message is to stay practical. Don’t just think about getting the best pillow for travel. You have to consider how you’ll transport that pillow too.
Do you plan to squeeze it into your backpack or baby bag? Make sure there’s enough space in there to fit it in. Otherwise, you’ll be in so much trouble trying to hold the pillow in one hand and your baby in the other.
Material
This consideration becomes a health concern if your child has allergies. In which case, make sure to get one that is hypoallergenic and dust-proof. It will be best to buy a pillow that comes with its own case to keep the pillow better protected from dirt throughout your trip.
Cleaning Options
To further help avoid allergic reactions, it will be ideal to get something like the Bcozzy travel pillow. Since it is machine washable, you’ll be able to clean it more often than getting something else that can only be tackled by dry cleaners.
Even when your child doesn’t have allergies, having a way to clean the pillow more often also keeps use hygienic. After COVID-19, who knows what other pathogen might be lurking out there in a post-pandemic world?
Mode of Travel
You’ll definitely have very different choices based on your mode of travel. If you’re traveling by plane and your child will be up in the air with you for many painstaking hours, you need to invest on ergonomic travel pillows which are often more expensive than ordinary ones.
If in case you are traveling on the road, you want to keep your child securely fastened on his seat with seatbelts on. In which case, you want to get a pillow that keeps his or her head in an upright position.
It has to be a pillow that can help keep your child’s head from bumping into the window or from wobbling around no matter the bumps on the road. You must also take time to check that your pillow can be safely tucked under your child’s seat belt without compromising your little one’s safety.
Number of Kids You Have
Well, when you’re traveling with just one child, you can pretty much ignore much of the physical features of his pillow. But, when you’re traveling with 2, 3, 4, or more kids then, it matters what kind of pillow each of your kids are tagging along.
Older children may tuck away their own travel pillows inside their respective carry-on bags. But, for smaller children, you will bear the weight of that extra piece of travel comfort wherever it is that you’re headed to. More importantly, you want your hands to be free to hold your children as much as possible so your pillows will have to either fit your bag or are inflatable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do airlines permit inflatable foot pillows for my child onboard?
The best way to find out is to check with your airline. While some airlines will permit it, you will usually not be allowed to have it set up during take-off and landing. You must also keep checking that it does not block the aisle. Foot pillows might actually become more of a hassle than a piece of comfort for you and your child.
Q: Is it possible for my child to get injured if I choose the wrong pillow?
Yes. Just like when you get a sore back or a strained neck when you stay in an uncomfortable position, your child can get injured because you chose the wrong pillow.
If you’re traveling with a child who has special medical conditions, talk to your doctor about the best ways to keep your child comfy during your trip.
Conclusion
Itching to see another inch of the world? Don’t just travel in style. Make comfort and safety a top priority for you and your little one. While the best travel pillow for kids may be all over the market, there’s one out there that will perfectly suit your needs and lifestyle. So, do take your time to find out that one piece of convenience that will impact the quality of your bonding time spent traveling. Check out our list of tried and tested top 7 choices here.
